HANS MAGDEN

HANS MAGDEN

I have been driven in my life by two principals, freedom and chaos; art gives me both. A blank canvas is freedom in its basic form, and the chaos of an untethered mind mixed with vivid uncensored emotion, and a little paint, results in a glimpse of who I am, where I have been and what I see. I hope you, as I do, find the finished piece fascinating, uncomfortable and immensely satisfying.

I find descriptions, like "oil on canvas", somewhat lacking. Years of experience, collective emotions, music and my trance-like state of mind during my painting frenzy are much more aptly descriptive of what I do. Painting, to me, is not a means to an end, but rather an end in itself. I follow no rules and use whatever means necessary, conventional or not, to get my image on the canvas.

I have been driven in my life by two principals, freedom and chaos; art gives me both. A blank canvas is freedom in its basic form, and the chaos of an untethered mind mixed with vivid uncensored emotion, and a little paint, results in a glimpse of who I am and what I ‘see’. My paintings are not only for others to see but for myself as well. The painting is a reminder of where I have been. The finished piece I find fascinating, uncomfortable and immensely satisfying.

I find the description of a piece, "oil on canvas", somewhat lacking. Years of experience, collective emotions, music and my trance-like state of mind during my painting frenzy are much more aptly descriptive of what I do. Painting, to me, is not a means to an end, but rather an end in itself. I follow no rules. I am not a technique artist schooled in the color-wheel or painting techniques and I use whatever means necessary, conventional or not, to get my image on the canvas.